First Baptist Church resurrected as Bridgewater Baptist Church

First Baptist Church of Bridgewater, founded in 1895, was woven into the moral fabric of the community for decades.But the white wooden house of worship at 20 Summer St. near the center of town has been abandoned for several years, its pews empty and paint chipping.Now, the church has a new name, a ne...

By Rebecca Hyman

The Taunton Daily Gazette, Taunton, MA

By Rebecca Hyman

Posted Mar. 31, 2013 at 12:01 AM
Updated Mar 31, 2013 at 5:35 AM

By Rebecca Hyman

Posted Mar. 31, 2013 at 12:01 AM
Updated Mar 31, 2013 at 5:35 AM

Bridgewater

» Social News

First Baptist Church of Bridgewater, founded in 1895, was woven into the moral fabric of the community for decades.

But the white wooden house of worship at 20 Summer St. near the center of town has been abandoned for several years, its pews empty and paint chipping.

Now, the church has a new name, a new pastor and is embarking on a bright new chapter in its rich history, said the Rev. Doug Denny, who will lead the first service at Bridgewater Baptist Church on Easter Sunday. Everyone is welcome, he said.

“On Resurrection Sunday we will be resurrecting a church as well,” said Denny, who lives in Mansfield with his wife Ellen and their two children, 5 and 3.

About a month ago, the Rev. Greg Bennett contacted Denny, the assistant pastor at Temple Baptist Church in West Bridgewater, about reopening First Baptist as a full-fledged Sunday service church.

Bennett had been running Saturday programs at First Baptist under the name Disciples Baptist but was not in a position to take on the project of re-opening it as a full-fledged church.

When Denny, 32, first set foot in First Baptist, he wasn’t sure what he was getting himself into.

It was piled high with worn out old furniture, dilapidated and in need of serious TLC. But he quickly began to see it as an exciting opportunity. So, he and a group of intrepid volunteers got to work filling dumpsters.

And what began to emerge was a beautiful historic interior, with antique details in a building that is structurally sound and debt-free. And Temple Baptist is sponsoring the project to breath new life into its sister church.

There’s still a lot of work to be done. The next step is a coat of paint and some new windows. But it’s not about the building anyway. It’s about the people, Denny said.

As he walked up the aisle on a recent afternoon, he could see forward and backward.

He imagined all the families who’d spent the momentous moments of their lives within those four walls.

“I think about all the weddings and funerals. It’s the echoes of the past. It gives you the ambition to renew it,” Denny said.

And in his mind’s eye, he could see the pews full again. It will be the only Baptist church in Bridgewater.

He sees young families who may not be attending church but feel something is missing in their lives. He sees professionals and working class families. He sees college students. He sees former members of First Baptist looking to reconnect with their spiritual home. Some have already contacted him.

“I could not let this place be demolished. It’s a treasure of town history,” Denny said.

Page 2 of 2 - Denny “came from nothing,” growing up in Brockton with a single mom in a six-decker, with kids who weren’t exactly on a fast track to the Marines, let alone the seminary.

He was a “bus kid,” one of the inner-city children Temple Baptist would pick up on a bus to bring to church. He’s not sure how much it meant to him at the time. He was always a believer, but it wasn’t a big part of his life.

But his experiences in combat as a young Marine during the Iraq War changed him. His division lost more than 20 men.

“As I watched my fellow Marines make the ultimate sacrifice, I started thinking, ‘It could be me next.’ And I started thinking about what my life would mean in the face of God for eternity,” said Denny.

So, when he got out of the Marines, he attended seminary, became a minister and then combined his two callings, returning to the military as a U.S. Army Chaplin stationed at Fort Story in Virginia Beach, Va.

He counseled badly injured soldiers, soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. He notified families a loved one had been killed. He stood by in operating rooms.

As a military chaplain, you work with soldiers of all faiths or no faith. You learn the most important thing is to listen, he said.

It was tough duty but deeply satisfying work. But in 2011, he decided it was time to go home.

All that has prepared him, he said, for whatever lies ahead. He’s ready to be a pastor and willing to do the hard work to build Bridgewater Baptist from the ground up.

“It will be a marathon, not a sprint,” Denny said.

As to the name change, he wanted to find a way to honor the past and embrace the future.